Twisted
by Dogluvertoo
Summary: When Regina decides that it's time for the truth about Belle to come out, Rumpelstiltskin struggles to make the right choice.  Will he be able to save her and make her love him again?
1. Chapter 1

She sat in the dark basement, and the world was outside. As someone who had no idea who she was or why she was there, Belle felt an odd sense of comfort in the darkness. The truth was that the only comfort she had came from the numbness she felt inside, from knowing that whatever was out there would be shielded from her forever. She knew how cruel the world could be, and she bitterly opposed it. Belle was unhappy, and yet she felt better being completely in the dark.

Being drugged up helped, she supposed. She wasn't sure that she was crazy, but wallowing up in numbness was better than feeling anything. Belle shrank into the haziness for hours. The mist coated her senses, dulled the pain into a simple ache. It was dreaming for hours of a time she could not place, a person that no longer mattered. The only thing that reopened the wound was the dark eyes, staring at her week after week. Although she had other forms of human contact every day, feeding her food, deadening and hardening her senses, there was something in those eyes that shocked her back to reality. And Belle hated facing reality.

Whatever security Belle had was immediately terminated the moment that the door to her safe haven was opened by a tall, sinister looking woman one day. A matching set of eyes to the ones that had been peering in at her week after week sat on the woman's face. The woman turned to the man beside her, a person Belle could not place. "I believe it's time. This one shall be coming into use very soon."

-RBRB-

Mr. Gold had felt pain before, and he had decided long ago that he simply did not care for it. Instead, he would avoid the whole shebang completely. He had it planned out perfectly. He had felt pain from losing his son. He had felt pain from losing her. He had loved his son. He had loved her. Therefore the only way to shut out pain was to shut love completely forever. The two lived side by side, hand in hand. It was all just a hoax that simple-minded people used to occupy their time. Rumpelstiltskin was not simple minded; he was not a fool.

"Good morning, Mr. Gold. Willing to talk today?" It was the police chief, Emma. She knew the answer before she asked, considering it had been two weeks and counting since Rumpelstiltskin had been arrested.

"Actually, that hardly shall be necessary. His name has been cleared," This time Emma actually looked up from her morning paper in surprise.

"Ms. Mayor, you do not have the power to release my criminals," Emma said, repeating a different version of the same argument held nearly daily.

"It's not me clearing him," Regina replied coolly, "although, Ms. Swan, I am tiring of this useless argument."

All eyes turned towards the door, where a nervous-looking man sat in a wheelchair, wringing his hands. "This would be my fault, ma'am," He refused to look at Emma.

"Moe?" This time the police chief could not hide her shock. "This man nearly beat you to death! Why would it be your fault?"

Rumpelstiltskin himself had a vague idea, involving magic, blackmail, or something similar. The mayor looked too pleased with herself for this not to be according to her own master plan.

"I attacked him, ma'am. He knew it would be either me or him," despite Moe's less-than-convincing excuse, Regina looked pleased anyway.

"I believe that we are done here," the door to Mr. Gold's cell opened, seemingly by itself, "come along, Mr. Gold," her eyes flashed to his for a moment, commanding obedience.

"You can't just—" Emma's cry of indignation was cut off with the mayor's own. "Henry!" The small boy entered the room, grinning toothily. "You can stay with the police chief today," obviously whatever Regina had planning was big enough to sacrifice her grudge against Emma. Rumpelstiltskin didn't have the energy or the courage to resist her.

Leaving the room briskly, Mr. Gold had to set a fast pace to follow. "If you don't mind—" He grit his teeth—"ma'am, what is so important that I've the pleasure of your full attention for the day?"

"You'll see."

-RBRB-

Their destination—the mayor's own home. Stepping into the mayor's home made Rumpelstiltskin's palms sweat. Never in a million years would he ever willingly step into that place—and yet he was doing so right now. If it wasn't for that little voice in the back in his head that was telling him something wasn't right, he would've run off the moment he was released from jail, laughing at the old woman's stupidity.

"We're almost there. Are you excited?" Rumpelstiltskin was almost surprised to hear Regina talk, breaking their silence for the first time since they had departed. He looked at her face, trying to read into what she was saying. Was he excited? No. Nothing that Regina had planned could make him anything but frightened.

They entered a modern kitchen, everything too shiny and sharp-angled. "You brought me all the way here to show me your kitchen?" Mr. Gold asked, trying to keep his voice level.

"Hardly." Regina turned sharply so that she was staring into a shallow pantry. Pinching her thumb and forefinger together, she reached out and turned a small gold handle, nearly hidden from view by a box of cereal. A door opened, revealing a dark stone stairway, destroying the modern look of the kitchen. She turned and smirked at him. "Age before beauty," she gestured.

Swallowing, Rumpelstiltskin descended slowly, choosing his steps carefully. He wouldn't put it against the mayor to try to kill him by a long fall. Now that she knew who he really was, anything was possible.

They finally reached the bottom, and the mayor took the lead again. They stepped down a long stone hallway silently, and Mr. Gold could hear the blood rushing through his ears.

"Here we are at last," Regina stopped at a tall iron door, with a small window cut into the metal, revealing an unconscious body. Rumpelstiltskin's breath caught in his throat, and he stared at the figure wordlessly.

It was the girl that had haunted him endlessly, whose voice tortured his dreams, whose eyes were forever imprinted in his memory.

The chest of the girl rose and fell, slowly, shakily. She was alive.

A voice whispered in his ear: "Now, let's make a deal."


	2. Chapter 2

It wasn't until moments later that Rumpelstiltskin's wits returned to him and it finally dawned on him that not only was Belle alive, but she was within footsteps of him. Feeling overwhelmed, nausea swept through Mr. Gold as he swayed and clutched at his head.

"She's alive," he mumbled, more to himself than Regina.

"Of course she is. Do you really think I'd let the one weakness of my fiercest competitor flit away to get killed? You really ought to give me more credit than that. I'm actually offended." Regina's face was more pleased with her game than irritated.

Rumpelstiltskin shot upright. "How _dare_ you," he growled.

"Oh, please. You were practically _begging_ me," the mayor feigned innocence.

The man looked back at the sleeping form. Still breathing. Still living. "What did you do to her?"

She grinned. "All I had to do was snatch her away on the path, actually minutes after you'd released her. You've really lost your touch, Rumple," Mr. Gold dug his nails into his palms and subconsciously stepped away from the Queen and closer to the door. She watched his movement with the eyes of a cat while continuing to speak. "Then all I had left was plant her in the dungeon, and make up some silly story that you didn't even bother to check. And then I waited. I simply knew that she would come in handy—"

"You kept her locked up because of _me_?" He raised his voice. "You kept her in a _dungeon_?" Rumpelstiltskin walked closer until their noses were practically touching, but Regina still wouldn't budge.

"You locked her up, Mr. Gold. You kept her in a dungeon. Either way, it doesn't matter," Regina extended her neck until they were looking eye-to-eye. "All that matters now is that you give me what I want," she paused, as if daring him to interrupt, and continued, "and then we'll talk about her release."

At last Mr. Gold's resolve broke and he sank into the cold door behind him. _It's true. It's all true. I hurt her. It's my fault. _He shut his eyes and tried to think.

The mayor watched him with mild amusement. "Tick-tock. We don't know how well she'll hold up in there."

Rumpelstiltskin looked up. "What is it you want?"

"Oh, Mr. Gold," She locked her eyes into his until he looked away. They both knew who would walk away victorious. "There are a lot of things that I want. But from you, I want two things. The first is that I want your powers. Unfortunately, there's not much I can do about that at the moment…" She trailed off, glancing at the door to Belle's room with a hint of accusation in her voice, as if blaming Belle for the entire inconvenience. "What I _can_ ask for is your memory. I want to take away any memories you have ever had of your moments…away from Storybrooke."

"I want to see her," Rumpelstiltskin told her. "Before I agree to anything you have to say, I want to see Belle," His voice broke on her name.

"How touching," Regina said, without a hint of sympathy. "but I'm afraid that I must refuse."

"Then I'm afraid," Mr. Gold fought to keep his words steady, "that I will have to remain here until you agree to let me see her."

Their eyes locked again, but this time Rumpelstiltskin refused to look away. His palms sweat, but the knowledge that she was mere inches away from him seemed to strengthen his determination. "Fine," the Queen's eyes still wouldn't budge. "I'll give you five minutes. The door's unlocked. I trust that after seeing your"-her voice stiffened –"_love_ the right decision will present itself to you." She walked away, her heels clicking sharply on the floor.

Listening to her footsteps dying away, Rumpelstiltskin took a deep breath and faced the door. It was his fault, all of it, and he knew that. The unconscious girl on the floor—the one he kidnapped, threw around, locked up—he had hurt her so many times. _But she still loved you,_ he thought to himself, _and it's your duty to fix this. Fix her. And maybe, someday, a long time from now, you will deserve her love. And she will love you again. _

Mr. Gold pushed aside the heavy door and entered. It was small and dark, but Belle's light seemed to fill the room. A shadow fell across her face, but he could tell it was Belle as easily as he could have back in his palace. There was only one Belle, one girl who managed to love a monster.

"I will prove that there is something in me that someone like you could ever love, Belle," Rumpelstiltskin sank to his knees and let the tears run down his cheeks like a dam had burst. He felt tired, even though it was barely noon. More had happened in that day than had happened to him in a lifetime. "I don't know if you ever really loved me, but I promise that I will make myself into someone that you might love…someday."

He reached up to brush the tears off his cheeks, but then stopped. Let her see him grovel, cry, beg. She deserved it all. "Belle, I-I.." He stuttered. He couldn't see her face well enough. She needed to see it, hear it, and sense it. Turning her over, gently, Mr. Gold laid her on her back like a piece of china, though he knew how strong she was. He brushed the hair away from her eyes and stared down at her pale face.

"I'm sorry, Belle. I'm so sorry that this happened to you, that I put you through this," He hesitated as she stirred, and then continued as she appeared to return to sleep. "It's all my fault, and I'm so sorry."

Rumpelstiltskin finished truthfully with, "I really loved you, Belle. I think I still do."

**AN: I decided to update early, because I did get two reviews, which I was REALLY happy about. Before I review again, I'm going to ask for THREE more. That's not a lot, but I feel that since I'm putting so much time and energy into this, I'd really like some feedback so I feel like all the work was worth it. I may even open this up to anons so PLEASE review if you want an update. (And I promise that it's going to get even better soon. I already have nearly the entire story planned out, and I promise it's going to get good.) **


	3. Chapter 3

"As touching as that little display was," Rumpelstiltskin turned in surprise to see Regina back in the doorway. "Time's up. I'd like you out of my house."

"What about our deal?" He stood where he was, next to Belle. He hated the idea of that woman anywhere near her.

Regina cracked a bitter smile. "Unfortunately, it takes _time _to actually erase the memory of someone. Although I'm happy to see that you will do it," That was true, he would do anything for Belle, and they both knew it. "Things need to be hunted down, people need to be threatened…it's actually harder work than you might think, Mr. Gold," she moved her icy gaze to Belle. "I also _hate_ the fact that I have to lose my only leverage with you. You may not be as powerful than me, but you have proved to be troublesome at times. Besides"—her eyes snapped back to him like a rubber band—"Henry will be home soon."

"And what if I refuse to leave?" He stood up and tried to look as tall as possible.

"Then I will kill her. And believe me, I don't bluff," That Mr. Gold believed. He turned his back to the Mayor, and his face back to the girl on the floor.

"You won't hurt her?"

"Why on earth would I?" Regina seemed offended at the thought of it.

"When can I see her again?" He looked down at her. Belle's hair was tangled, she was dressed in a hospital gown, but she was still as beautiful as he remembered. Rumpelstiltskin had to fight to turn back towards the door.

"Two days from now, Wednesday."

"And why not tomorrow?" He asked, trying to read the mayor's expression. She looked truthful, but why couldn't he come the next day?

"I have errands to run," she acted like that explained it all.

Rumpelstiltskin opened his mouth to argue, but she beat him to it. "Leave. I'm tiring of this conversation already, and I have a feeling that we may have it more than once," Her eyes opened wider, daring him to challenge her.

"Fine," he resigned, "I'll leave," and then just as an attempt to remove the victorious smile from his opponent's face he added, "but I'm coming back first thing on Wednesday."

She didn't argue, and Mr. Gold was almost disappointed. He turned towards the door to leave. A hand flew on top of his shoulder and stiffened, as if not used to human contact. "But believe me when I say if you tell anyone about this girl, our arrangement, _anything_," the Queen stepped in front of him, and in her tall heels they were looking eye-to-eye. "this girl will disappear _forever._" He swallowed, and her smile strengthened. "And however you may hunt her down, tear this world apart flower by flower"—she turned so that she was now talking directly into his ear and lowered her voice to a whisper—"you will never find her."

Rumpelstiltskin walked out the door, up the stairs, out of the mayor's house and down three streets to his own. He kept his mouth clamped firmly shut whenever he passed anyone on the street, despite the fact that no one had actually made small-talk with him in years.

-RBRB-

The girl's eyes opened slowly, as if she'd been given more sleeping pills recently. She wondered when that had happened, since she didn't remember taking any blue pills the day before. It was when she was trying to remember the last time she'd taken any non-regulatory pill that she noticed that she was staring at a stone ceiling, sitting on a stone floor, and in some place she'd never been before.

At first she was frightened, and had to turn facedown and bury her head in her arms to get her breathing back to normal. Then she was just curious. It was obvious she wasn't in the doctor's office or anywhere else scary. There wasn't anyone around her, and the basics of the room were the same as her old one. Maybe she had just changed rooms. Or maybe this was the same one as before, and they'd just redecorated. Maybe they did screw up her medications and she was seeing the real room for the first time.

Speaking of her medications, she suddenly noticed that she felt more alert than she had felt in a long time. It scared her, to be totally in her own control and she yearned for more pills to deaden her senses and take her to sleep. She couldn't remember a time that something this strange had happened to her, because for as long as she could remember she had been the girl in the dark room. Only now she was in a different dark room, and she felt like a different girl. She didn't even know her name, and for the first time in her life that bothered her.

She was angry. She couldn't remember that happening either. "Hello?" She said loudly, hoping for someone to hear her. "Hello!" She wanted more pills, she wanted to know her name, hell, she even wanted _people_.

The girl banged her fists into the wall, ignoring the pain. "Someone get me out of here! I want…" she trailed off. There was a terrible moment when she realized that she didn't know what she wanted, she just knew that she was unhappy and for the first time, she wanted to be able to do something about it.

She hit the wall as hard as she could, then cried out as she felt something tear into her back. Like a spark exploding into flame, her whole body roared in pain. She fell to the floor screaming as she was overcome and started to fall unconscious.

She saw a teacup falling to the floor, a ugly man's face. And then she was gone.

Before she fell into complete unconsciousness she heard a woman's voice say something distinctly, although the words made no sense.

"We couldn't have Henry hearing you, could we, Belle?

**AN: I decided to power through and add another chapter today, just because I'm going to be gone for the next few days and won't be able to update. Thank you so much for all the reviews and story alerts! It makes me so happy to see them all. For this chapter, I'm going to ask for ten reviews, although please don't stop there! It takes 20 seconds of your time, and the more you review the more chapters you get!**

**Oh, and did you hear that Emilie de Ravin (Belle) is coming back for an early May episode?**


	4. Chapter 4

Rumpelstiltskin was still buried in his thoughts the next morning, so he didn't bother trying to leave the house or even get any sleep. How could he when she was alive and well? But she had no memory of him, and even he had to admit that it was probably better that way. Regina's words echoed in his mind. How could someone like _her_ ever forgive him? He forced the idea out of his mind. The first thing he had to do was get her to safety.

Figuring out how to do that was the hard part. Mr. Gold was cunning and used to getting his way. The thing that had always worked to his advantage was that he didn't care about any one else, no one to worry about, and no one to hurt him. That was always the hard part of being the hero, because you had a duty to protect those around you. Rumpelstiltskin was not a hero, but he did have a duty to save Belle. Did that make him a hero? _No. I owe her. No matter how you look at it, I will never be anything but a monster._

But sacrificing his memory? That would leave him weak, and if there was one thing Rumpelstiltskin hated to be, it was at the mercy of others. He liked being in control, not to mention that he didn't have the slightest idea who he would be just as "Mr. Gold." He would be completely in the dark, and he had no idea how he could ever protect himself, not to mention Belle in that state. He also knew that losing his memory of Belle could hurt her. Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold was many things, but generous? Kind? Heroic? No. How would he treat the girl if she were just some person who needed his help? She would no longer be _Belle_ to him, the girl who loved him, and more importantly, that he loved.

All of these thoughts were getting him nowhere, so finally he went and stared at his chipped cup, hoping to get answers.

_Soon._ He thought to himself, more to ease his conscience than anything. _I'm not being selfish. I'm protecting her. I will wait._

-RBRB-

She woke to a small pressure in the very spot she had been hit the night before. Had she been shocked? Hit? Cut? Electrocuted? Any seemed plausible. Groaning, she tried to get up, to open her eyes, but her body refused. _Belle_? Was that her? The name sparked no recognition whatsoever. Maybe she had been dreaming again.

"Hello?" She stiffened. The voice was unfamiliar and new to her. Despite her cries the night before the last thing she wanted now was a new person in her room. Now all she wanted was a cup full of colorful pills to whisk her away. "Are you okay?" The dull ache in her back exploded into pain and she bolted upright.

Standing next to her with his index finger out was a small boy. "Did you poke me?" She asked in surprise. He nodded, his mouth in a round O, but he didn't step back.

"Who are you? I've never seen you before," He asked, his eyes wide. She stopped and studied him for a moment. Small, with messy hair and a cute face. How old was he? Six, seven? She couldn't remember ever being that age. Then again, she didn't know how old she was in the first place.

"I'm…" She stopped. Who was she? The question repeated itself in her mind, but she wasn't a bit closer to finding out then yesterday. "I don't know who I am," she answered truthfully.

The boy's head cocked to the side. "I'm Henry. Why are you in my house?"

"Henry…" She tried to get her bearings. Why was that name familiar? She tried to think, but her head hurt too much. She gave up. "This is your house?" It didn't look like a very good place for a child.

"Well…"Henry looked around the room doubtfully. "The upstairs part is. I've never been down here, but this morning I found the staircase over there"—he pointed to his left—"and I wanted to see who was down here," He grinned at her. "I thought I heard someone down here last night!" He announced triumphantly. "My mother said that I must have been dreaming."

He looked at her, as if trying to read into her. "I thought when I saw you sleeping that you might be Sleeping Beauty. I haven't met her yet," before the girl could question his words, he continued. "But now I know you're Belle."

Belle? There was that name again. "Did you know me?" She asked, trying to keep her voice calm. Maybe Henry did know her, and he could lead her out and help her see who she was..."Do you think—"

"Henry!" A frantic voice called. "_Henry!_ Where are you?"

"That's her now," Henry said, sounding disappointed. "I'll have to come back later," He started walking away, and she reached toward him desperately from her place on the floor. "Wait! Henry! _Please—_"

"Henry?" A cold voice broke through the chaos, the same one that had been calling for him seconds earlier. The small boy, who had been looking at the girl on the floor, turned his head.

"Sorry," He said, not sounding sorry in the least. Immediately, he added, "Is this why you brought Mr. Gold here yesterday?"

"Henry," The woman brushed off his question, keeping her voice level. "Go upstairs. Now. I will speak to you in a moment," Henry stood up and scuttled away, turning around once to give a small smile to the girl. "Bye, Belle!" He waved.

The woman's mouth gaped open in horror, but the damage had been done. _Why is she so shocked? _ The girl wondered, but like the rest of her questions remained up in the air, unanswered.

"Do not try communicating with him, do not scream, do not _cry,_ do not make a sound!" The dark-eyed woman hissed in pure fury. The girl could not look away, because the eyes of the woman were something she finally recognized. At least she had finally gotten a full look at her captor. Or was this not the one keeping her here?

She buried her face in her arms until the woman finally left her alone. "What the hell is going on?" She asked herself.


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry for the long wait! See the AN below!**

Belle sat up straight against the cold metal of the wall, ignoring the prickles of goose bumps covering her arms and legs. Was that a noise? She was positive that the unpleasant woman upstairs wouldn't be caught crashing around in her kitchen, the little boy perhaps? Belle dismissed the idea. She doubted that the little boy would have anything to do with that awful woman…except perhaps if he was captured too? It was just another unanswered question to add to the list.

_I really need to stop thinking until I actually get something solved, _she thought grumpily. Belle was surprised by her own emotions. She had gone through every deep emotion in the book yesterday: confusion, anger, sadness—but she still wasn't used to having this much power over herself and her own actions. The thought that she might one day have responsibility over her life scared her, but not as much as the thought that she might spend the rest of her life inside the dreary little dungeon. Deciding on the lesser of two evils, Belle forced her aching muscles to move as she examined the interior of her prison and tried to think of a way to escape.

Where was she? Belle cursed herself for adding another question to the list, and silenced that query. Asking more questions that she didn't know the answers to wasn't going to get her anywhere.

There were no windows. The walls and floors were solid concrete. It looked like the only way she was going to escape was through the door. Belle surprised herself by coming up with this simple decision. It heartened her enough to work up the courage to try the door. Locked. She felt like screaming in frustration. _What? Did you think this was going to be easy? _Her thoughts taunted her. _If you're going to get out, you're going have to try a lot harder than that._

Could she possibly overcome the woman with pure physical ability? As much as she hated these questions, she forced herself to ponder the idea anyway. The woman didn't look particularly strong, but she'd made it as far as locking a girl in her basement. Belle knew she shouldn't expect the door to her room to be her only barrier. Belle would have to wait for an opportunity to gain more knowledge about the building she was trapped in.

A thought occurred to her. "Hey!" She shouted as loud as she could, risking another attack. "I've got to use the bathroom!"

Silence. "_Hey—" She_ began again.

"I'm _coming_," Her spirits rose as she heard the sharp clicks of someone in heels trying to shuffle down a set of stairs.

_I know that I'm in the basement of this house. _Answering one question gave her hope. _Maybe I actually can do this._

Belle stood up straighter, trying to best prepare for an attack, just in case. After gaining a new sort of independence, Belle planned to keep her mind free from outside interference. She no longer wanted to be numbed.

The door opened without any sort of setback to the woman in black, surprising Belle and giving her yet another clue. _Maybe the door is only locked from the inside. _ She wasn't sure if this could help her at all, but she was willing to try anything.

"Hurry up, I'm doing you a favor. And don't believe for a _second_ I'm not willing to leave you in here to your own devices," the woman snapped. It was obvious that Belle had reached her at a bad moment, but Belle decided it might mean that the woman was unprepared and might make sloppy mistakes in concealing the house. _Maybe this is what I need to escape. _Still, there were too many _maybes _for Belle to actually use in a plan.

The dark-eyed woman led Belle down a long stone hallway, and up a set of stone steps. At the top of the staircase a small door was thrown open, revealing a polished kitchen. Belle's breath caught in her throat at the sight of the beautiful kitchen. A fresh wave of questions poured into her mind. Downstairs her captor had looked out of place, but up here in the midst of a glowing house, Belle's shabby look stood right out. She found herself running her fingers through her hair sheepishly, and then quickly forced herself to stop before the woman noticed. It wasn't _Belle's_ fault that she looked so horrible.

"Well?" Belle turned to see the woman glaring at her impatiently. "We certainly don't have all day!" She pointed sharply to a small bathroom across the hall. Belle stumbled into it, caught too off guard to be taking notice of the rooms nearby.

Belle sat down hard on the floor right in the center of the little room and struggled to make sense of anything she had seen. So far? She had no idea what she was doing and how she was going to escape. All she wanted was to leave, or at the very least she wanted to know why she was here in the first place. Had she done something bad? Belle wracked her brain, and suddenly images of an estranged man yelling in her direction popped into her head. The image was gone within seconds, but Belle didn't know what it meant. The man felt familiar but…

A crash echoed through the large home, and Belle froze. It could just be the woman taking out her frustration on some poor object, but it didn't _feel_ like it. It was the same sound that she had heard earlier, but somehow…louder. She stood up and opened the door a crack.

"What the _hell_ do you think you're doing in my home?" The voice was unforgettable. It was that same scary woman, but she was out of sight. Belle strained to hear a second voice.

"I need to see her," this was a new sound, but somehow it had a tinge of remembrance in it too. Was this someone Belle knew? Could he even be asking about _her_? The voice sounded panicked, and she waited for more.

"I explained this to you just a few minutes ago. You know the agreement," the woman sounded more irritated than anything else. "I wasn't expecting you until tomorrow."

"But I _need_ to see her—"

"Luckily for you she has _plenty_ of time on her hands. Good bye, Mr. Gold," Her tone dripped of superiority and Belle could almost hear the smirk in her voice. Instead of hearing a door close like she expected, Belle heard footsteps tearing in her direction. She panicked and almost closed the door, but fought against her instincts. What if this person was someone who could help her?

She threw open the door and watched a tall man struggle into the room as quickly as he could manage. She noticed that he depended heavily on one of his legs, giving him quite a bit of trouble in getting away from the woman. He stopped suddenly, nearly crashing into the wall he was heading towards. Belle felt his gaze on her, but she was too scared to meet it. She regretted leaving the bathroom.

"Belle," He whispered.

**I did say that it would be a bit of a wait, but I didn't think it would be three weeks. Sorry about that! Now, here is a LIFE OR DEATH decision for you readers to make. It is ridiculous that I have over 30 people on story alert-not to mention all the non-story alert readers and anons—and yet I am still struggling to get 10 reviews per chapter. If you want this story to be continued, REVIEW. Without those 10 reviews for this chapter (they don't even have to be HAPPY reviews) I will not be updating. EVER. You will never get to see their happy reunion. **


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